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What our loans can help you with

Diverse lending options to better suit your exact needs

The journey is unique for everyone, however what remains constant is Bernie Lewis Home Loans dedication to your exact needs.

Choosing a home loan can be confusing. Beyond the wide choice of major banks, credit unions and other lenders, there’s also a multitude of loan products available.

At Bernie Lewis Home Loans we work closely with the lenders and their products to really understand the features of each product. By also understanding your individual needs and goals we can match the loan products and suitability to those needs, helping you to make an informed decision. You can check out our lending partners here. To learn more about the different types of loans follow the read more links above.

Stage 1. Understanding your goals

Speak with one of our expert brokers and make a time to discuss your lending needs. We get prepared by completing a fact find and gathering your financial information. Things like:

  • Bank account details
  • Evidence of employment and income
  • An outline of your current assets and liabilities
  • A summary of your usual household living expenses
  • Documents to verify your personal identity

If you don’t have some of the above information don’t worry, your broker will still be able to help and guide you through. During the conversation your broker will listen carefully to the things that are important to you to determine the best way forward based on your specific requirements.

Stage 2. Our recommended solution

Your broker will perform their assessment based on your individual needs and consider your current financial situation. They’ll assist by ordering property valuations where necessary and present you with the most suitable options from the most competitive financial institutions available to match you and your circumstances.

From there you’ll be able to make your selection from your broker’s expert recommendations outlined in our written Statement of Credit Assistance before progressing to a lender application.

Stage 3. Getting approved

As a part of the application process, we’ll help guide you through the documents you’ll need to provide to the lender in support of your application. Your broker will then liaise with the lender to obtain conditional approval (also known as pre-approval in some cases), while resolving any conditions required to be granted with a formal or ‘unconditional’ loan approval.

Next we’ll move to the review and acceptance of the formal loan offer documents from your lender, then liaise with the necessary parties to effect settlement of the loan and make the funds available to you.

Variable interest
rate loans

The standard variable rate loan comes with many options and the interest rate fluctuates depending on market conditions. You have flexibility of making additional repayments without penalty and the ability to redraw any additional repayments you have made at any time.

Many lenders offer a basic variable rate loan with a lower rate than the standard variable rate loan. These loans generally have many of the same features as their standard variable rate cousins, but often aren’t as flexible. For example, some of these loans may not allow you to redraw additional payments or you may incur fees if you do so.

You may consider a variable rate loan if:

  • You want ultimate flexibility with your loan
  • You want to be able to make large principal repayments on your loan
  • You have the capacity to absorb increases in interest rates without undue hardship, and conversely, benefit from rate decreases

Fixed interest
rate loans

A fixed interest rate loan allows you to fix the interest rate for a period of time, generally between one and five years.

Some home loans have fixed terms of up to 5 years. After the fixed term the loan usually reverts to the standard variable rate on offer at that time, or you may choose to refix the loan for another term.

You may consider a fixed rate loan if:

  • You are on a tight budget and need certainty of the repayment amount each month
  • You are an investor looking to achieve a fixed return on your investment
  • You believe interest rates may rise significantly in the future and can’t afford increased repayments

If you decide to sell your home or refinance your loan whilst on a fixed rate term you may incur a penalty.

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Lending terminology explained

The following is a list of terms and their meanings that you may come across when purchasing a home and arranging a home loan.

This is the person who acts on your behalf for the purchase of the property. They will attend the settlement and ensure that you get clear and unencumbered title or ownership of the property. They may also conduct various searches of the title to ensure that everything is in order as well as collect and disburse all funds in the transaction and provide you with your detailed settlement statement. A solicitor can also perform this function.

Any contract to purchase property, may have conditions imposed on it by either the vendor or purchaser; however a contract for a property purchased at auction usually cannot have any conditions, These could be conditions such as subject to a satisfactory building or pest inspection, or subject to finance. In fact, any condition can be placed on a contract but it must be agreed to by both vendor and purchaser. If a condition is not met by the nominated date or time then either party can cancel the contract, usually without penalty.
The purchase contract will specify a deposit amount that must be paid prior to the end of the cooling off period, or in the case of an auction, on the fall of the hammer. This amount is usually 10% of the agreed purchase price; however it is open to negotiation. The money is held by the selling agent in their trust account until settlement. You should ensure that you are issued with a receipt for the deposit paid.

When you sign a contract to purchase a property, you then have until midnight two clear business days later to cancel the contract without penalty. Any deposit paid will be refunded in full.

A property purchased at auction does not have cooling off rights. Cooling off rights can also be waived by signing the appropriate document prepared by a solicitor. This is generally done for a property going to auction and purchased prior to the auction.

This is a once only premium payable by the borrower at establishment of the loan. Most lenders will insist on LMI cover whenever the loan is greater than 80% of the value of the property. It protects the lender (only) in case of default on the loan. If the lender takes possession of a property after a borrower defaults and there is a shortfall on sale of the property, the insurer will cover that shortfall. The insurer will then seek reimbursement from the borrower.
This is the document that is lodged with the Land Titles Office (LTO) detailing the change of ownership of the property. This is usually prepared by the conveyancer for the purchaser.
Is the legal document that registers the lender’s financial interest in the property, and gives them the legal power to sell the property if the Mortgagor is in default on the loan.

The lender who is providing the loan and therefore holds the mortgage on the property.

The lender will register their financial interest in the property by way of a notation on the title. This is done by the LTO and they will charge a fee for this.
This is you, or the person borrowing the money to fund the property.
This is the process by which the conveyancer acting on your behalf lodges the Memorandum of Transfer with the LTO to transfer ownership of the property. The LTO charges a fee for this based on the contract price of the property.
This is a fee levied by the State Government on all property transactions. It is calculated on the contract price, or fair market value of the property and is payable on settlement.